There are signs that China’s central government is giving regional authorities more power to manage their local economies, while at the same supervising them more carefully.
The move suggests that Beijing is redefining its relationship with local government to cope with profound changes resulting from substantial economic reforms.
Beijing has decentralized its power over land requisition, allowing provincial governments to handle sales of farmland for construction. Beijing has also allowed local governments to take bigger shares in revenues from land sales and coal mining. Furthermore, the central government is now considering granting local governments the authority to raise funds by issuing bonds. [Full Text]